Apr 18, 2008
Windjammer Barefoot Cruises is finally and conclusively out of business
Over an anxious period of several months last year, I chronicled the efforts of various members of the Captain Burke family, owner of Windjammer Barefoot Cruises, to keep that marvelous line alive. Windjammer used to sail the Caribbean on wind-driven ships as passengers downed gin and tonic, read paperback books from their perch on the rigging, and dived over the side when the ship was in port to frolic and snorkel about. All this was offered for reasonable rates, and there has never been a better way to cruise.
Let's all hope that someone else will revive Windjammer, which will probably required constructing new ships, as some of the old ones may no longer be seaworthy. But Windjammer is no more. It has forfeited its license with the Florida authorities, failed to post a $50,000 bond, closed its offices, and -- to all appearances -- ceased functioning. Though you may see fragments of its former website continuing on the internet, you obviously should not respond until or unless a completely new Windjammer is born. And if you encounter people who still believe Windjammer is operating, you might set them straight.
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Let's all hope that someone else will revive Windjammer, which will probably required constructing new ships, as some of the old ones may no longer be seaworthy. But Windjammer is no more. It has forfeited its license with the Florida authorities, failed to post a $50,000 bond, closed its offices, and -- to all appearances -- ceased functioning. Though you may see fragments of its former website continuing on the internet, you obviously should not respond until or unless a completely new Windjammer is born. And if you encounter people who still believe Windjammer is operating, you might set them straight.
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Labels: cruise
A reader who has herself hosted a hundred travelers for the "Help Exchange," has furnished additional helpful detail about that organization
In a recent post, I asked for additional information on the intriguing Help Exchange (www.helpx.net) that enables travelers to trade four or five hours a day of their labor for room and board. Reader Yvonne Gluyas, who is herself a host for the Help Exchange, has responded with such valuable detail that I am drawing your attention to her comments:
I am a HelpX host in Tasmania, Australia. I have hosted a total of 100 helpers over the past two years, and think it is a GREAT worldwide, online organisation.Read her full comments here.
Most of my helpers stay at our place for about one week, the longest was for 10 weeks! Hosts can have a farm, hostel or B & B, or live in a family home.
Labels: hospitality exchange
At last! A Chinese website enabling you to obtain low-cost air tickets to and within China -- directly from the Chinese
For several years now, Ctrip.com has been China's leading source of travel news, accessed by a multitude of Chinese readers. But although it maintained a barely-working version in English, it was the Chinese-language website on which most attention was lavished. Lots o' luck.
Ctrip.com has now given its English website a big facelift and a crystal-clear address, www.english.ctrip.com. And it has also created a phone number (011-86-21-34064888, ext. 6) for inquiries or to make a booking (you'll hear a Chinese-language announcement until you press extension 6 at the end of the Chinese statement). Starting now, you won't find cheaper tickets to China, or within China, than on Ctrip's English-language site.
Prices are set forth in Chinese Yuan (CNY), which you convert into dollars by dividing by 7. Thus, 2,100 Yuan equals $300. Here are some examples of they're presently offering (all round-trips):
You can also e-mail Ctrip at e_service@ctrip.com. And you can book beach vacations in China (you've been dying to do so) at sharply-discounted rates. See you on the sands at Qingdao!
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Ctrip.com has now given its English website a big facelift and a crystal-clear address, www.english.ctrip.com. And it has also created a phone number (011-86-21-34064888, ext. 6) for inquiries or to make a booking (you'll hear a Chinese-language announcement until you press extension 6 at the end of the Chinese statement). Starting now, you won't find cheaper tickets to China, or within China, than on Ctrip's English-language site.
Prices are set forth in Chinese Yuan (CNY), which you convert into dollars by dividing by 7. Thus, 2,100 Yuan equals $300. Here are some examples of they're presently offering (all round-trips):
- Vancouver and Shanghai on Air Canada: 3,670 Yuan ($524)
- Chicago and Shanghai on American Airlines: 3,150 Yuan ($450)
- London and Shanghai on China Eastern Airlines: 4,080 Yuan ($582)
- Saigon and Guangzhou on Vietnam Airlines: 1,610 Yuan ($230)
- Shanghai and Xian on China Eastern Airlines: 1,000 Yuan ($142)
You can also e-mail Ctrip at e_service@ctrip.com. And you can book beach vacations in China (you've been dying to do so) at sharply-discounted rates. See you on the sands at Qingdao!
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Labels: accommodations, airfare, budget travel, china, websites
Apr 17, 2008
Here's a 14-day, $1,859 re-positioning cruise leaving November 29, not only for a top cabin on a classy ship, but also airfare to the embarkation port
A great many Americans are intrigued by the low cost of 14-day re-positioning cruises between the Caribbean and Europe (or vice-versa), but are then turned off by the realization that they need to buy a one-way, trans-Atlantic airfare in order to get to, or come back from, Europe; the re-positioning cruises are one-way only.
That's why it was smart of Online Vacation Center (tel. 800/329-9002; www.onlinevacationcenter.com) to include a one-way trans-Atlantic airfare in the price of a re-positioning cruise in late autumn on the Celebrity Summit, a very classy, upscale ship. Starting from $1,859 per person, Online Vacation Center will first fly you to Barcelona from Miami, New York, Newark or Washington, D.C., and then place you aboard the Celebrity Summit in an outside, balcony-equipped cabin for a 14-night cruise from Barcelona to San Juan, Puerto Rico, leaving Barcelona on November 29, 2008. Considering the very high quality of the ship, the 14-day length of the voyage, and the one-way airfare to Spain, this is quite a value and a trip you might consider.
What's more, Online Vacation Center will charge you only $100 more if you fly out of Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Montreal, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, St. Louis, San Francisco, Tampa or Toronto. And sailing from Barcelona to San Juan, the ship will stop en route in Malaga, Madeira, the Canary Islands, Philipsburg, and St. Maarten.
You won't see a better cruise bargain than this. Keep in mind that the price isn't for the usual inside cabin, but for one with a big window opening onto an ocean-facing balcony. As for the Celebrity Summit, it's a 2,000-passenger giant launched in 2001, with every amenity.
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That's why it was smart of Online Vacation Center (tel. 800/329-9002; www.onlinevacationcenter.com) to include a one-way trans-Atlantic airfare in the price of a re-positioning cruise in late autumn on the Celebrity Summit, a very classy, upscale ship. Starting from $1,859 per person, Online Vacation Center will first fly you to Barcelona from Miami, New York, Newark or Washington, D.C., and then place you aboard the Celebrity Summit in an outside, balcony-equipped cabin for a 14-night cruise from Barcelona to San Juan, Puerto Rico, leaving Barcelona on November 29, 2008. Considering the very high quality of the ship, the 14-day length of the voyage, and the one-way airfare to Spain, this is quite a value and a trip you might consider.
What's more, Online Vacation Center will charge you only $100 more if you fly out of Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Montreal, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, St. Louis, San Francisco, Tampa or Toronto. And sailing from Barcelona to San Juan, the ship will stop en route in Malaga, Madeira, the Canary Islands, Philipsburg, and St. Maarten.
You won't see a better cruise bargain than this. Keep in mind that the price isn't for the usual inside cabin, but for one with a big window opening onto an ocean-facing balcony. As for the Celebrity Summit, it's a 2,000-passenger giant launched in 2001, with every amenity.
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The growing consolidation of internet websites is starting to cast real shadows over the integrity of internet information
One of the problems of the Internet is that many of the cheeky, impudent, brutally-honest websites on it become so profitable that they are then bought up by big corporate conglomerates. The people who started the site take the money and run, and the site is thereafter administered by various complacent staff members with no history of journalistic honesty, no real understanding of integrity in travel.
Meanwhile, the big-time owners of the general travel sites have all sorts of conflicts. They sometimes own hotel chains, tour companies, airfare search engines, hotel search engines, other travel-related entities. And you can bet they're not happy when one of the websites they own publishes critical remarks about other websites or companies (hotels, tour operators, etc.) they own. If one of their websites should propose to expose one of their other properties, what do you think they do?
Our friends over at Beat of Hawaii have recently published a list of the properties belonging to major internet companies. They point out:
If you think they will, then I have a tooth fairy you'd like to meet.
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Meanwhile, the big-time owners of the general travel sites have all sorts of conflicts. They sometimes own hotel chains, tour companies, airfare search engines, hotel search engines, other travel-related entities. And you can bet they're not happy when one of the websites they own publishes critical remarks about other websites or companies (hotels, tour operators, etc.) they own. If one of their websites should propose to expose one of their other properties, what do you think they do?
Our friends over at Beat of Hawaii have recently published a list of the properties belonging to major internet companies. They point out:
- That Expedia now owns Trip Advisor, Smarter Travel, Cruise Critic, Seat Guru, Booking Buddy, Travel Library, and Travelpod.
- That Internet Brands now owns Flyertalk, Slowtravel, CruiseMates, CruiseReviews, Vacationhomes, Vacation Timeshare and Rentals, Wikitravel, World 66, and Vamoose.com.
- That Orbitz.com, through Travelport, now owns 10 different chains of hotels (like Wyndham, Days Inn, Ramada, Travelodge, Howard Johnson, and others), as well as Avis and Budget Rent a Car. Do you think you will now be seeing critical comments about these hotels and car rental companies on Orbitz? Or that Orbitz will be strictly impartial in sending bookings to other hotels in preference to their own?
If you think they will, then I have a tooth fairy you'd like to meet.
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Labels: big business, websites
Our U.K.-based reader, GarryRF, has submitted an intriguing suggestion for inexpensive holidays in Europe: EuroCamps
I don't know Garry's last name, but I do know that his suggestions are usually right on the mark with important advice. Recently, he has advised the use of public camping grounds (and camp facilities) in Europe, and the point he makes is so important that it should be set forth in our main blog and not simply in responses to previous posts. Note, in particular, the listing at the end of his message, of the locations and features of these campsites, most of which supply the cabins or tents in which you live. Here's what he had to say:
>Arthur. In your advice "to radically change your method of traveling in Europe," you make no mention of the Camping Parks. Similar to the US. R.V. Park. It's where half of Europe goes in the Summer.
Read Garry's full post here.
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>Arthur. In your advice "to radically change your method of traveling in Europe," you make no mention of the Camping Parks. Similar to the US. R.V. Park. It's where half of Europe goes in the Summer.
Read Garry's full post here.
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Apr 16, 2008
You might consider using the Australian search engine for hotels, Wotif.com, for last-minute bookings to any of 30 or 40 countries
I've been receiving numerous favorable comments on a search engine maintained for last-minute hotel bookings (always within 28 days) by those enterprising Australians. It's called Wotif.com, and although it's mainly used by Australians and New Zealanders, it accepts searches and bookings from anyone, for travel to almost everywhere. It's best, obviously, for hotels in scores of Australian cities; it's worst for hotels in New York City; it's excellent for hotels in London and the U.K. And it has become a mighty presence in travel, with several offices around the world.
The company's website, www.wotif.com, stresses the last-minute nature of Wotif's best prices. Book within a couple of weeks, it claims, and you'll score big. Whatever, you might check the rates you've gotten from U.S. search engines with what the Aussies are offering.
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The company's website, www.wotif.com, stresses the last-minute nature of Wotif's best prices. Book within a couple of weeks, it claims, and you'll score big. Whatever, you might check the rates you've gotten from U.S. search engines with what the Aussies are offering.
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Labels: accommodations, websites
The British have been far more critical than our own business journalists about the proposed merger of Delta and Northwest Airlines
From the Wall Street Journal to Barron's, from Fortune magazine to Conde Nast's Portfolio, from the business section of The New York Times to the Motley Fools: scarcely a word criticizing the merger between Delta and Northwest Airlines. Instead, a constant, almost-mindless repetition of the headlined reasons for the deal: "a natural industry shakeout," "high fuel costs and the economic downturn," "synergy" and "increased efficiency," a step that will "strengthen the U.S. aviation industry without harming consumers".
The British have a different take on the matter. If you'll go to Travelmole.com, a leading UK website reviewing the aviation industry, you'll find a devastating rebuttal of each and every one of the suggested reasons for this awful merger, a careful listing of the dishonest claims, a searing appraisal of the rather-standard corporate minds that brought it about.
It isn't necessary, say the British, to focus on the personal self-interest of the airline executives (and their associated lawyers and investment bankers) who are proposing these mergers, of whom some will undoubtedly make tens of millions of dollars in fees and other payments at the conclusion of the arrangement. The same consolidation will enrich the very same managers, lawyers and bankers who presided over the earlier bankruptcies of several of these carriers. The merger of Delta and Northwest, say the British, will cost approximately 5 billion dollars to implement, an expenditure that cannot possibly be offset by any claimed savings.
Such a merger, they claim, "won't improve the quality of customer service, could easily increase costs and reduce efficiency, and would increase overall financial risk". The only way to avoid those consequences is for the newly-merged airline to exploit the consumer and/or prevent low-cost carriers from continuing to operate.
The purpose for creating mega-carriers, in other words, is to lessen competition. I will be writing further about this dreadful merger in the weeks to come.
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The British have a different take on the matter. If you'll go to Travelmole.com, a leading UK website reviewing the aviation industry, you'll find a devastating rebuttal of each and every one of the suggested reasons for this awful merger, a careful listing of the dishonest claims, a searing appraisal of the rather-standard corporate minds that brought it about.
It isn't necessary, say the British, to focus on the personal self-interest of the airline executives (and their associated lawyers and investment bankers) who are proposing these mergers, of whom some will undoubtedly make tens of millions of dollars in fees and other payments at the conclusion of the arrangement. The same consolidation will enrich the very same managers, lawyers and bankers who presided over the earlier bankruptcies of several of these carriers. The merger of Delta and Northwest, say the British, will cost approximately 5 billion dollars to implement, an expenditure that cannot possibly be offset by any claimed savings.
Such a merger, they claim, "won't improve the quality of customer service, could easily increase costs and reduce efficiency, and would increase overall financial risk". The only way to avoid those consequences is for the newly-merged airline to exploit the consumer and/or prevent low-cost carriers from continuing to operate.
The purpose for creating mega-carriers, in other words, is to lessen competition. I will be writing further about this dreadful merger in the weeks to come.
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Labels: airlines, big business
Does TripAdvisor refuse to publish negative reviews of hotels with which it has a business relationship?
Though it has nothing to do with Hawaii, a recent item about TripAdvisor over at Beat of Hawaii raises interesting questions. I'm passing on the point they imply, without comment from me, because I have no factual evidence to either support or deny the claim.
First, a bit of background. TripAdvisor is owned by Expedia, a billion-dollar corporation whose highly-paid CEO shows great interest in the bottom line. Expedia also markets properties that belong to ResortQuest, and one such property is the venerable Pacific Monarch Hotel in Honolulu.
According to one of the authors of Beat of Hawaii, he has twice submitted negative reviews of the Pacific Monarch Hotel in Honolulu to TripAdvisor. His complaints in each instance were standard commentaries, claiming the hotel was "dingy," the airconditioning "substandard," the furnishings "dated and junkie," the tv not bolted to its stand (it nearly crashed to the floor), and citing many other defects. All in all, he wrote, it was "one of the worst in Waikiki; no monarch would stay there".
"I submitted the same review twice for publication," he writes. "Both times I was told by TripAdvisor that my writing 'did not meet review criteria.'" His review has never appeared.
"Conflict of Interest?" he asks. "TripAdvisor is owned by Expedia which markets Resort Quest properties that include the Pacific Monarch Hotel. While it may just be a coincidence, is it in their best interest to publish a negative review?"
"The problem is I no longer feel that I can always trust their site," he concludes.
So to all those readers who have, in the past, criticized me for my skepticism about TripAdvisor: what do you make of this? Do you really believe a billion-dollar corporation has any special regard for principle?
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First, a bit of background. TripAdvisor is owned by Expedia, a billion-dollar corporation whose highly-paid CEO shows great interest in the bottom line. Expedia also markets properties that belong to ResortQuest, and one such property is the venerable Pacific Monarch Hotel in Honolulu.
According to one of the authors of Beat of Hawaii, he has twice submitted negative reviews of the Pacific Monarch Hotel in Honolulu to TripAdvisor. His complaints in each instance were standard commentaries, claiming the hotel was "dingy," the airconditioning "substandard," the furnishings "dated and junkie," the tv not bolted to its stand (it nearly crashed to the floor), and citing many other defects. All in all, he wrote, it was "one of the worst in Waikiki; no monarch would stay there".
"I submitted the same review twice for publication," he writes. "Both times I was told by TripAdvisor that my writing 'did not meet review criteria.'" His review has never appeared.
"Conflict of Interest?" he asks. "TripAdvisor is owned by Expedia which markets Resort Quest properties that include the Pacific Monarch Hotel. While it may just be a coincidence, is it in their best interest to publish a negative review?"
"The problem is I no longer feel that I can always trust their site," he concludes.
So to all those readers who have, in the past, criticized me for my skepticism about TripAdvisor: what do you make of this? Do you really believe a billion-dollar corporation has any special regard for principle?
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Labels: websites
Apr 15, 2008
The highlight of my recent cruise of the Rhine River was -- can you guess it? -- Strasbourg
It wasn't Cologne, though Cologne was awesome, and it wasn't Heidelberg, though Heidelberg was another tingling experience. On my recent cruise of the Rhine on a 140-passenger riverboat, the top stop was in Strasbourg, France, where I wished we could have stayed for a much longer time than our eight-or-so hours there. The architecture, the food, the culture, the history, all combine to make this charming, canal-filled, Alsatian city a big surprise of Europe, one that I had not earlier explored.
The city is first a visual delight, with major canals throughout, and a large medieval district known as "Petite France" lined with black-and-white half-timbered buildings preserved from the 1400s and 1500s. It is the historic home of Louis Pasteur, of Albert Schweizer, of Johannes Gutenberg (he printed his Bible here), and Marcel Marceau. It has a glorious Cathedral, almost the equivalent of Cologne's, and sporting an Astronomical Clock that tourists flock to see.
Its history has been a turbulent one, rotating back and forth between French and German control (though in France, it is right on the German border). It was annexed to Germany in 1940 at the outset of World War II, and then recovered to France at the end of the war by General LeClerc's French troops. As the capital of French Alsace, it presents a unique and distinctive French/German culture known as Alsatian, and its restaurants specialize in such dishes as Choucroute Garnie (sauerkraut, boiled potatoes, and pork).
Roberta and I spent the day wandering its quaint districts, enchanted by the medieval quarters and the picturesque canals, looking in on the modern headquarters buildings of numerous agencies of the European Union (which make Strasbourg into a second capital of the E.U., after Brussels), browsing its many bookstores, drinking wine in its cafes. If you've never been there, you might want to include it on your next European visit. It is a stop on almost all cruises of the Rhine, such as the one we made.
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The city is first a visual delight, with major canals throughout, and a large medieval district known as "Petite France" lined with black-and-white half-timbered buildings preserved from the 1400s and 1500s. It is the historic home of Louis Pasteur, of Albert Schweizer, of Johannes Gutenberg (he printed his Bible here), and Marcel Marceau. It has a glorious Cathedral, almost the equivalent of Cologne's, and sporting an Astronomical Clock that tourists flock to see.
Its history has been a turbulent one, rotating back and forth between French and German control (though in France, it is right on the German border). It was annexed to Germany in 1940 at the outset of World War II, and then recovered to France at the end of the war by General LeClerc's French troops. As the capital of French Alsace, it presents a unique and distinctive French/German culture known as Alsatian, and its restaurants specialize in such dishes as Choucroute Garnie (sauerkraut, boiled potatoes, and pork).
Roberta and I spent the day wandering its quaint districts, enchanted by the medieval quarters and the picturesque canals, looking in on the modern headquarters buildings of numerous agencies of the European Union (which make Strasbourg into a second capital of the E.U., after Brussels), browsing its many bookstores, drinking wine in its cafes. If you've never been there, you might want to include it on your next European visit. It is a stop on almost all cruises of the Rhine, such as the one we made.
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Labels: cruise, strasbourg
As our airlines shrink in number, we should all start thinking about re-regulation
Delta has acquired Northwest Airlines, in a merger that will result in the nation's largest single airline. United is on the brink of merging with Continental. The world of aviation in America -- a business of crucial importance to all of us, a public utility if there ever was one -- is fast shrinking in the number of its competitors, and competition will inevitably disappear when just a handful of giants set the fares and choose the routes. The few remaining upstarts will lose their ability to keep fares low, and our options in air transportation will be determined, eventually, by three or four carriers acting in parallel fashion to each other.
It was the possibility of healthy competition that caused Congress to de-regulate the airline industry years ago. Competition was the key. I'm not saying that we are necessarily on the brink of an industry lacking competition, but we are getting there. Because the system of air transportation is too important to be dominated by just three entities, because a public utility needs to be operated for the benefit of the public, we should all start thinking about what measures are necessary for the public interest. I will be writing more about this topic in the weeks ahead.
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It was the possibility of healthy competition that caused Congress to de-regulate the airline industry years ago. Competition was the key. I'm not saying that we are necessarily on the brink of an industry lacking competition, but we are getting there. Because the system of air transportation is too important to be dominated by just three entities, because a public utility needs to be operated for the benefit of the public, we should all start thinking about what measures are necessary for the public interest. I will be writing more about this topic in the weeks ahead.
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Labels: airlines, merger, regulation
If you're a fan of the Hawaiian Islands, you'll want to rush quick to the Beat of Hawaii blog
The 50th State has just obtained an important blogger, a critical chronicler of its foibles and trends. In www.beatofhawaii.com, two recent transplants to the Islands are uncovering all the secrets, disclosing the less attractive developments, showing the shady side of travel to and within our own tropical paradise.
Wanna know what it's like to take the new Super Ferry from island to island? Beat of Hawaii shows a video of the ungainly ship pitching and heaving in high seas, and then attaches a "Barf-o-Meter" to record the degree of seasickness aboard. It also points out that on a recent sailing to Maui, only 45 passengers booked onto a vessel capable of carrying several hundred.
Wanna learn the impact that the bankruptcy of ATA and Aloha Airlines has had on airfares to Hawaii? Beat of Hawaii ventures an estimate. Wanna hear the predictions of insiders about the next Hawaiian Airline to go belly-up? It's all in Beat of Hawaii.
I don't agree with all their conclusions. But it's fun to read this new site, an example of the valuable insights and advice that honest blogging can bring to travel.
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Wanna know what it's like to take the new Super Ferry from island to island? Beat of Hawaii shows a video of the ungainly ship pitching and heaving in high seas, and then attaches a "Barf-o-Meter" to record the degree of seasickness aboard. It also points out that on a recent sailing to Maui, only 45 passengers booked onto a vessel capable of carrying several hundred.
Wanna learn the impact that the bankruptcy of ATA and Aloha Airlines has had on airfares to Hawaii? Beat of Hawaii ventures an estimate. Wanna hear the predictions of insiders about the next Hawaiian Airline to go belly-up? It's all in Beat of Hawaii.
I don't agree with all their conclusions. But it's fun to read this new site, an example of the valuable insights and advice that honest blogging can bring to travel.
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Apr 14, 2008
Atlas Vacations, of Brooklyn, continues to offer unbeatable vacation packages to the Caribbean in July, August and September
Their computer system is not the greatest (and users of Macs will shun them entirely), but Atlas Vacations, founded many years ago by Jamaican ex-pats, continues to offer stunning air-and-land packages throughout the year. For departures in July, August and September, in particular, their offerings are remarkable for persons willing to take the risk of stormy weather at that time. Consider the following:
To Jamaica, their top bargain, they'll fly you in July, August or September round-trip to the Shields Hotel in Negril for seven nights of hotel accommodations starting from:
Extra nights are $35 per person, and single supplement is $245.
To Barbados, Atlas will fly you there round-trip, and put you up for seven nights in a studio apartment of the Hotel Golden Sands, at the following base-prices:
Extra night rate is $59 per person; single supplement is $350.
You can book by calling 800/634-1057 or by accessing www.atlasvacations.net via Internet Explorer (please note this site does not display properly using a Firefox browser). Bear in mind that airport transfers are not included and are your own responsibility.
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To Jamaica, their top bargain, they'll fly you in July, August or September round-trip to the Shields Hotel in Negril for seven nights of hotel accommodations starting from:
- $394 from Miami
- $441 from Orlando
- $557 from Los Angeles (and that unusually low price from the west coast is no mistake)
- $568 from New York
- $588 from Philadelphia
- $596 from Chicago
- $598 from Baltimore
- $664 from Charlotte
Extra nights are $35 per person, and single supplement is $245.
To Barbados, Atlas will fly you there round-trip, and put you up for seven nights in a studio apartment of the Hotel Golden Sands, at the following base-prices:
- $698 from Miami
- $795 from New York, Philadelphia, Boston or Baltimore
- $713 from Charlotte
- $770 from Los Angeles
Extra night rate is $59 per person; single supplement is $350.
You can book by calling 800/634-1057 or by accessing www.atlasvacations.net via Internet Explorer (please note this site does not display properly using a Firefox browser). Bear in mind that airport transfers are not included and are your own responsibility.
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Labels: barbados, caribbean, negril, tour companies
A reminder about the world's cheapest destinations (for bearers of the U.S. dollar)
They are:
Moderately cheap:
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- Panama
- Nicaragua
- Honduras
- Dominican Republic
- Buenos Aires
- U.S. National Parks
- Bali
- Thailand
- Vietnam
- China (though China's currency is constantly strengthening)
Moderately cheap:
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Labels: budget travel, money
In travel, things can only get better from now on; they can't get worse
We have just experienced two of the most difficult and disappointing weeks in the recent history of travel. The sadness began with the debacle of Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport, where British Airways totally bungled the opening of a giant new facility, destroying the trips of thousands, losing the luggage of tens of thousands, and creating a reputation for incompetence that will takes years to dispel. The bad news continued with the bankruptcy in one week of three airlines: ATA (a major source of low-cost air tickets to Hawaii), Aloha Airlines (internal flights within the Hawaiian islands), and Skybus (charging $10 a seat for the first several seats on its flights to and from Columbus, Ohio); and the insolvencies continued the very next week with the Chapter XI filing by Frontier Airlines (which has, however, continued flying). (Various travel pros are currently taking bets on the next carriers to go under, and the list includes some of the best known.)
Then things got worse, with the cancellation of hundreds of American Airlines flights due to the need for long-delayed inspection of aircraft wiring, ruining trips by more than a hundred thousand passengers and causing airports to bulge with stranded travelers. (On my own Delta flight to Atlanta, Georgia, this past Friday, there were 30 stand-bys -- all people attempting to travel onward via the Georgia capital in substitution for the more logical itineraries of their cancelled American Airlines flights.)
And finally, this past Friday, the U.S. dollar resumed its drop against the European Euro, reaching a level of $1.59 per Euro -- which means an actual exchange of more than $1.70 per Euro when the fees and commissions of money-changers are factored in. (Not too long ago, the U.S. dollar sold at par against the Euro.) As is already the case in Britain, where you must double the price in English pounds in order to get the dollar equivalent, we may soon have to do the same with Euros on the continent -- as if European prices weren't high enough already!
So what's to be done? You must always pay for your travel purchases with credit cards, hoping that the credit card company will reimburse you if the trip you have purchased goes down the drain. You might also take out travel insurance (go to www.insuremytrip.com for an analysis of the policies), purchasing only those policies that protect against the default of the supplier. And with respect to the high cost of traveling in Europe? Well, that's another matter.
I can tell you from the experience of my trip over the past two weeks that Europe has not lost its appeal. It is still the classic destination for Americans, a part of our cultural life, a source of our heritage. Your recourse is to radically change your method of traveling in Europe, substituting much cheaper alternative accommodations (apartments, hostels, rooms in private homes, monasteries, schools, free hospitality services like Servas, Couchsurfering, and Globalfreeloaders) for hotels, eating picnic meals once a day, splitting mealtime plates with your companion. Approached in that manner, Europe can even become a more vital and authentic experience.
And finally, you can take that long-delayed trip to Central or South America in place of Europe, traveling where the dollar remains strong. By 2009, and possibly depending on political developments, the dollar may regain some of its strength, and it surely will do so over the long run.
In this blog, we'll be constantly on the lookout for other means of reducing the cost of a European trip. If anything significant occurs, you'll learn it here.
Write and read comments about this post.
Then things got worse, with the cancellation of hundreds of American Airlines flights due to the need for long-delayed inspection of aircraft wiring, ruining trips by more than a hundred thousand passengers and causing airports to bulge with stranded travelers. (On my own Delta flight to Atlanta, Georgia, this past Friday, there were 30 stand-bys -- all people attempting to travel onward via the Georgia capital in substitution for the more logical itineraries of their cancelled American Airlines flights.)
And finally, this past Friday, the U.S. dollar resumed its drop against the European Euro, reaching a level of $1.59 per Euro -- which means an actual exchange of more than $1.70 per Euro when the fees and commissions of money-changers are factored in. (Not too long ago, the U.S. dollar sold at par against the Euro.) As is already the case in Britain, where you must double the price in English pounds in order to get the dollar equivalent, we may soon have to do the same with Euros on the continent -- as if European prices weren't high enough already!
So what's to be done? You must always pay for your travel purchases with credit cards, hoping that the credit card company will reimburse you if the trip you have purchased goes down the drain. You might also take out travel insurance (go to www.insuremytrip.com for an analysis of the policies), purchasing only those policies that protect against the default of the supplier. And with respect to the high cost of traveling in Europe? Well, that's another matter.
I can tell you from the experience of my trip over the past two weeks that Europe has not lost its appeal. It is still the classic destination for Americans, a part of our cultural life, a source of our heritage. Your recourse is to radically change your method of traveling in Europe, substituting much cheaper alternative accommodations (apartments, hostels, rooms in private homes, monasteries, schools, free hospitality services like Servas, Couchsurfering, and Globalfreeloaders) for hotels, eating picnic meals once a day, splitting mealtime plates with your companion. Approached in that manner, Europe can even become a more vital and authentic experience.
And finally, you can take that long-delayed trip to Central or South America in place of Europe, traveling where the dollar remains strong. By 2009, and possibly depending on political developments, the dollar may regain some of its strength, and it surely will do so over the long run.
In this blog, we'll be constantly on the lookout for other means of reducing the cost of a European trip. If anything significant occurs, you'll learn it here.
Write and read comments about this post.
Labels: airlines, money, tips, travel insurance
Fifty years ago, 
Arthur Frommer is generally acknowledged to be the nation's foremost travel authority. He is the founder of the
